Huatulco
is located on the southern Mexico Pacific Coast and is approximately
425 miles SE of Acapulco or 115 miles SE of Puerto Escondido in the
state of Oaxaca.

The FONATUR, Mexico's government
funded tourist development agency, planned and funded Phase 1 of the
Huatulco resort area development with eighty million dollars (not pesos)
back in the early 80's. The Huatulco infrastructure is impressive and
the project was officially inaugurated in 1988 with several 5 star hotels
in the Tangolunda area. The resort area is divided into a variety of
areas targeting budget, mid-range and upper-end travelers. Planners
have vowed to set aside the majority of the resort's approximately 52,000
acres as ecological preserves in order to protect the area's natural
environment. When projected develoopment is complete, the resort is
expected to have some 30,000 hotel rooms, bring in 2 million visitors
annually and generate nearly 25% of the State's total revenue.

The nine bays from east
to west include Bahia Conejos, Bahia Tangolunda, Bahia Chahue, Bahia
Santa Cruz, Bahia El Organo, Bahia El Maguey, Bahia Caculuta, Bahia
Chachacual and Bahia San Agustin. Currently, only two of the bays are
developed - Bahia Tangolunda and Bahia Santa Cruz. Conejos, Tangolunda,
Chahue and Santa Cruz are accessible by car. The rest are enjoyed from
boat trips which easily arranged for at the harbor.

Tangolunda, "Place
where the gods live" in Zapotec, is the well developed hotel center
where six major resorts encircle the bay. Several beaches line this
bay including Playa La Hierbabuena, Playa del Amor, Punta Praiso and
Playa La Entrega where a coral reef is just a few feet offshore.

Bahia Santa Cruz, the site
of the original fishing village, is the second developed area with Cruise
Ship Docking, party boat day cruises along the bay and deep sea sport
fishing at it's best. The village of Santa Cruz has a shady main square
surrounded by shops, restaurants, bars and a few Mexican style, middle
class hotels.

La Crucecita is located
a mile or so inland from Bahia Chahue (Chah - way) and is considered
the city center of Huatulco. La Crucecita has a charming town square
including a lovely old church and all the restaurants and shopping a
reasonable person could ask for. Chahue is the central and largest of
the nine bays with significant planned development in progress.